Bayer Leverkusen win men's German football Bundesliga for first time

Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz celebrates scoring his side'sfourth goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer 04 Leverkusen and SV Werder Bremen at BayArena. David Inderlied/dpa

Bayer Leverkusen won the Bundesliga title for the first time after beating Werder Bremen 5-0 at home on Sunday, ending Bayern Munich's 11-year reign as champions.

The victory gave Xabi Alonso's unbeaten side an unassailable 16-point lead with just five matchdays left.

The returning Victor Boniface got the opener from the spot midway through the first half while Granit Xhaka and Florian Wirtz's hat-trick after the break made it 29 games without defeat in this season's Bundesliga and 43 matches in all competitions.

Leverkusen, previously dubbed Neverkusen for so long having finished second five times in the Bundesliga, are now on for a treble given their remarkable unbeaten season.

They visit West Ham United in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final on Thursday boasting a 2-0 lead while Leverkusen also have a date with second division Kaiserslautern in the German Cup Final on May 25.

The Werkself started last season near the bottom of the Bundesliga and Alonso was recruited in October 2022 in his first major coaching job. He dragged them up to sixth spot last term and now has clinched the title in his first full season, ending his former club Bayern's hegemony of the German top flight since 2013.

Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz (L) celebrates scoring his side's third goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer 04 Leverkusen and SV Werder Bremen at BayArena. Federico Gambarini/dpa
Leverkusen's Granit Xhaka celebrates scoring his side's second goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer 04 Leverkusen and SV Werder Bremen at BayArena. Federico Gambarini/dpa
Leverkusen's Victor Boniface scores his side's first goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Bayer 04 Leverkusen and SV Werder Bremen at BayArena. Rolf Vennenbernd/dpa

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